Although parts of this article are not directly related to HIV, the moderator has chosen to post it. It was sent to [him] anonymously.

The moderator disagrees with some of the points made. There is no reason for people living with HIV to avoid hot showers or insects. HIV is not acquired or transmitted by hair-cut blade or lip kiss.

Is there a list of places in Myanmar where antiretroviral therapy ART with antiretrovirals ARV is available?

The moderator will leave it up to other Myanmar / Burma websites and email services to discuss H1N1 seasonal flu.

[him] moderator

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It is a very good news that many countries and many organizations would like to help Myanmar citizens.  Due to the primitive society in Myanmar, many HIV infected patients dare not come to the right center for medical treatment.  Society in Myanmar has not modernized yet so that people avoid HIV infected patients.  Society, neighbors, environment put HIV infected patients out in the cold.  HIV infected patients need moral support as well as medication support.  Due to the very poor medical treatments by local doctors, some die without any proper reason.  Local doctors, nurses, hospitals, centers, etc., provides very unfriendly atmosphere to all patients.  Some even hostile to the patients.

Medications for HIV patients are very complicated.  Physicians need to check HIV patient with a great care and decide which level of HIV medication is suitable for that particular patient (according to the HIV blood test –cd4 result for each patient).  Medication for one HIV patient and other HIV patient may not be the same.

ARV medication is just a general name for HIV patients.  Same level of ARV medication cannot treat for all HIV patients.  All HIV patients must take medication at least twice a day and 12 hours time difference.  HIV patients cannot miss even a single dose of the medication and a great care to take twice a day with only 12 hours time difference.  Maximum 15 minutes can be late to take the daily medications.  All HIV patients must take the medication for life long period.

HIV medications are very costly so that it is hard for anyone to pay for the medications for life long.  As far as we know, one type of HIV medications is directly imported from U.S.A. to Thailand and the other type of HIV medications is from under license companies in Thailand (for example, Reyataz  atazanavir medication, GOP-VIR medication, etc).  HIV medications from under license companies in Thailand are cheaper.  It cost THB or Baht 20, 000 (Baht twenty thousands) per month in government hospitals, according to a HIV patient in Bangkok.   One can say that it is expensive enough for a Thai people in Thailand too.  No wonder that it is very hard for any single person to afford taking HIV medications for life long period especially where he or she is living in a third world countries or from a developing countries.

All kind of insects can be sharply harmful to all HIV infected patients.  All HIV infected patients must stay away from insets’ bite –including mosquitoes.  Hygienic is essential for HIV patients.  HIV patients are not suggested to take hot-shower because they have sensitive skin.  They are advised to stay in an air-conditioned room.

Moral support to HIV infected patients is also essential because some of them even have “depression”.  When HIV patients are deeply upset, disappointed, unhappiness, etc, their health condition is dramatically go down.  That is why, they need not only medication, but also happiness.

In Thailand, people can buy condoms even in convenience stores like 7Eleven, family marks, am pm, etc which opens 24 hours.  Where to buy and how to buy condoms in Myanmar?  Can local people afford to buy one or not?  Do they have knowledge to use it or not?  HIV virus can spread not only from having sex without condom, but also from blood transmission, from hair-cut blade, from oral sex, from dental-clinics, from lip-kiss, from knife which is used in operation-theaters of the hospitals, from drug-addicts, needles from syringes, etc, etc.

There are many HIV infected patients or people living with HIV in the Union of Myanmar.  Many HIV patients cannot afford any HIV medications and some are lack of HIV medication because of their respective NGO stopped providing them with many reasons.  People in Burma or in the Union of Myanmar are indeed helpless.  People in Burma have no human-rights at all and no voice at all.  They are same like prisoners in their own country no matter they live in the jail or not.

Life is very cheap in Myanmar.  Many people there are lack of education, knowledge and dare not speak openly to what they feel to their doctors, clinics and the medications.  Corruption is everywhere and every level in Myanmar.  Least number of medications will go into the hands of infected patients and the rest may sell out in the black market.  Even NGOs are not reliable at all. But patients can get at least some help from NGOs (something is better than nothing).  We heard that HIV medications supplied by NGOs are just off and on time period.  Whenever there is a shortage of medications or lack of fund, patients must stop taking medications.

Is there any hope for anyone to get a NGO job especially in Burma?  We heard that although they post job vacancies on the net, they already had selected job applicants to fill the positions.  They only employ those who know them very well like family members, relatives, closed friends, someone special, etc.  NGOs job posting on the net may be only for publicity.  Actually job vacancies may not open to ALL.

One breast cancer patient for example, was taken medical treatment in the city of Rangoon, one of her breast was cut without doing even mammogram or X-ray in one of the private hospitals in Yangon.  She then went to Thailand for further treatment.  She is an engineer and a government officer.  Thai doctors do not know what to do with her because she could not submit her past medical record and she cannot submit the tissue or paraffin wax of the tissue of the breast she cut off in Myanmar.

In Myanmar, many local LABs are totally useless and not at all dependable and reliable.  As I said above, the tissue must keep in the paraffin wax and it must keep in a lab at least for one year long (international standard), but in Myanmar, no lab keep that even for three months long.

There are not at all modern medical technology machines, equipments, etc in throughout Myanmar (Example, Mammogram machine, digital radiation machine, etc).  All the money from selling out jewelries, teaks, natural gas, crude oil, all kind of metals, all kind of natural rsources like seafoods, sands, etc are going into government fund for buying weapons.  We are so ashamed to say that Union of Myanmar now is completely like a “banana republic”.  Military force is very strong in South-East Asia, but apart from Military force, all other sectors like health, education, technologies, etc are far behind or still very out-dated.   All sectors need foreign countries help, but when they get helped, they grabbed in their own pockets as much as they could.

Although there are many medical doctors in Myanmar who graduated from UK or other Western countries or elsewhere in the world, they are very careless and they do not have any medical ethic.   Even the Local doctors with overseas degree themselves are not at all up-to-date with modern medical technology.  For some instances, the diagnosis of the patients does not match the medications given by a doctor.

We are sure that in other countries, family members, relatives, e
tc of the patients take a legal action against the doctor if their love ones die with the careless of the doctor, but in Myanmar, because of the religious teachings, family members, relatives, etc of the patients do not sue or take the legal action against the doctor even if their love ones die with the careless of the doctor because they can easily forgive to the doctor.  They believe that whatever they put a spite on the doctor, they cannot get their love ones back with life again.  That forgiveness unintentionally encourages the doctors to do more and more careless and accidently to commit more and more crimes in future.

Patients who cannot afford to go abroad for medical treatment are same like guinea pigs in Myanmar.  Only 15 percents of the total population in Myanmar can afford to go abroad for medical check-up, for education, for holidays, etc.  The fate of the rest are just depends on their own “Karma”.

We read many news, magazines, etc for swine flu or A H1 N1 infected virus.  We know that there is a medication to prevent that virus from spreading only.  We haven't read any article that people who already infected A H1 N1 virus can 100% cured.  Is there anyone who cured fully from infected A H1 N1 virus?  Kindly advise us.

State-run television in the union of Myanmar broadcasted that some A H1 N1 infected patients cured fully and already discharged from the respective hospitals.  According to the most recent news, 16 patients who are infected by A (H1N1) virus cured 100% at the State-run hospitals and they even already discharged from the hospitals.  Can it be possible?  We believe the whole world will be laughed and astonished to hear such kind of ridiculous news which is produced by dictatorship government source.  The media never announce that it is swine flu.  It only mentioned that it is a kind of world human flu.  It said consumption of pigs is not at all harmful to people with regard to A H1 N1.  Is it right?

Is the Union of Myanmar is the first and the only country in the world that can 100% cured some A H1 N1 infected patients and can even discharged from the respective local hospitals?  Please advice.

These poor conditions really existing in the most developed city in Myanmar called Yangon.  So, what about and how about of the patients who live in the provinces?

Many villages do not even have first aid clinic / center and no village library at all.  In Irrawaddy division for example, the villages between Nga Ting Chaung town and Lay Myat Nhar town (except I tha byu town) --  which is only a half-day trip by bus from Dagon Aye Yar Highway Bus Terminal; located in Hlaing Tar Yar Township, Yangon --- do not even have a first aid center and there is no power supply at all.  Each hat (each family) does not have own toilet.  A few numbers of hats have to share one toilet.

Since there is no power supply, village people cannot have an opportunity to watch health education which is broadcasted by TV.  Daily papers, weekly journals cannot reach many villages in Myanmar so that village people cannot have a chance to read it.   Many villagers are uneducated or have only a primary school level education or some are even illiterate.  Some women living in urban areas and many Village women in Myanmar do not have the knowledge to use menstruation-pad for themselves and diapers or nappies for their babies.   Without wearing menstruation-pad   ---some women living in urban areas and many village women look very awful when having period, blood stain on their serong (longgi or htee mee) look very dirty and the odor from the blood stain welcome many flies follow them wherever they go.  Some blood even dropped down through the legs.

Without wearing diaper for their babies --- some babies who are living in urban areas and many babies who are living in rural areas look very dirty when they produce urine and feces anytime at everywhere.  Some babies produce such dirty things on their parents, some produce on the floor of the house where they visit (it must be very sorry to the host), some produce on the pagodas, in the Churches, some produce in the public park, some produce on the public bus, highway bus, some produce in the metered cubs, etc.  It is not at all appropriate manners for the environment and also to the society.

Married families do not have the knowledge to prevent child by taking anti-pregnancy drugs or they don’t know how to make a family plan.  Many poor families have many children, but parents cannot take care of their children in proper way.  Children have to work in the fields to earn money for their families.  So, child labor is just a normal thing or like a lawful thing in the villages of Myanmar.

There is no electric stove, gas stove, oven, micro-wave, etc in all rural areas or villages in Myanmar.  People have to use cut wood to burn it for cooking.  It leads to deforestration.  They have to use candles for light at night.

Income per capita of many villages in Myanmar is just only Ks. 700 (less than US$ 01).  There is no job or very less job vacancies in rainny season.  The poor quality rice is about Ks. 600.  Village people eat a lot of rice, but there is no money left to buy for meats, vegetables, fruits, etc for balance diets.  Furthermore, there is no money left to buy for such menstruation-pad, diapers, clothes, under-garments, tooth-paste, tooth-brush, etc.  Even the living standard of Urban area is very low compared to neighboring countries like Thailand.  So, whatabouts and howabouts of the living standard of Rural areas or villages in the Union of Myanmar?

Lowest income per person in Yangon is just Ks. 15, 000 (Fifteen Thousands Kyats only) for unskill full-time house-maid.  For factory workers in Yangon, each could earn Ks. 1, 000 (One Thousand Kyats only) as their daily wages.  For semi-white collar jobs and some white collar jobs, they could earn maximum Ks. 100, 000 (One Hundred Thousands Kyats only) per month.  There are many unemployment problems both in Yangon, many other urban areas as well as in many rural areas and villages in the Union of Myanmar.

Due to the language barrier, foreigners cannot speak directly to the local people or infected patients or even if he or she does, he/she cannot get right answer from them because local authorities (government as well as NGOs) already shouted them what to say to the foreigners.  People who live in the province are very timid type compared to the city dwellers.  Saffron Revolution for example, military men raided “Lwei Kyar Yan” monastery in South Okkalapa Township which is located suburb of Yangon and monks from that monastery were immediately replaced by special monks selected by dictatorship government to answer the questions which is asked by UN investigation team.

Still now, many local people in Myanmar and many foreigners do not know how many NGO HIV treatment centers in Myanmar and Please advice if there is a website to see the location or address of the NGO HIV treatment centers existing in Yangon and throughout Myanmar and how the effective treatments given to the patients.  Many NGOs give the reason that they have shortage of medications, funds, etc.

All kind of fresh meats, fish, livestocks, etc in Myanmar do not have any health certificate (International Standard or ISO certified) --- which stated that the fish, meat, etc.. are healthy and suitable for human consumption.   There is no medical check-up at all for all kind of animals, fish, etc before they are sent to butchers.

There is no international standard hospital or ISO certified in Myanmar.  We cannot say that a hospital with international standard is just in-terms of the decoration of the hospital rooms only.  The Hygienic, doctors and&
nbsp; nurses treatments to the patients, hospital rooms’ service, food service rendered by the hospitals, hospital equipments, services provided by all level of hospital staff, etc, etc are also counted.  Some people who live in urban areas and many people who live in rural areas can afford / can rely on only tradition medicines/herbs/leaves, etc because it is cheap and they can read the description of the medications easily because it is written in Burmese language.  95 percent of the tradition medicines/herbs/leaves, etc are not at all internationally recognized or ISO certified.